RANDOM THOUGHTS Tuesday, June 23, 2020
Dear Parishioners and Friends of St. Francis Parish,
Another summer day. I must say it really takes a lot out of me. I’m already looking forward to October.
I got a letter from Bishop Cote regarding Sister Gloria. I have expected it for quite a while. The Diocese pays her salary and due to the present C 19 pandemic it needs help. Bottom line is that our parish needs to come up with $5,000 to help the Diocese. I’m sure we can do this. All the nuns that work in our Diocese work very hard and earn every penny they make.
This past Saturday Anthony Rivera made his First Holy Communion and on Saturday, Deacon Octavio and I did a wedding for Carmine and Elizabeth, from New York. Ten people total. Very nice. Hopefully they can have a reception sometime next year.
The weekend of July 4 and 5 is “reopening” weekend. We will still have masses at 9:00 am in English and 11:00 am in Spanish in the parish center. According to the guidelines most of our English speaking members should stay home. We are already seeing a spike in cases in 25 states now that they have “reopened,” so to speak. This is NOT a good sign. I think our issue is going to be with the Spanish community, which is a lot younger. But, it will all work out somehow.
I have been called to the hospital to give Anointing of the Sick to two people. Right now MMH is C 19 free. Let’s hope it stays that way. I am still not going for services at the three nursing homes I attend, but they call me if they need me for an emergency anointing.
I don’t know if or when we will get back to what we used to know as “normal.” My gut feeling is that C 19 is not going to leave us anytime soon. So, we continue to pray, wear masks, wash our hands, and practice social distancing. Isn’t it sad that wearing a mask is now a “political” thing?????